


Cut From The Same Cloth

by PotcFan101



Category: The Punisher (TV 2017), WandaVision (TV)
Genre: Frank Castle Being a Father, Wanda Maximoff Needs a Hug, WandaVision 1x06 AU, post-Punisher Season 2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-17 04:08:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29465535
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PotcFan101/pseuds/PotcFan101
Summary: After being tipped off by an old friend, the Punisher decides to check out the Westview anomaly. While there, he discovers not everything is as it seems, and he's forced to negotiate the freedom of thousands of residents with the most powerful Avenger.
Relationships: Wanda Maximoff and frank castle, Wanda Maximoff/Vision
Comments: 2
Kudos: 26





	Cut From The Same Cloth

**Author's Note:**

> So I ended up seeing the latest episode of Wandavision, and I kept thinking about how SWORD was being a bunch of assholes, especially at the end. Then my head wandered to thinking about the Punisher, and how his show got cancelled, so I thought what the Hell. Anyway, this was the result of that train of thought. Oh, this is not a Frank/Wanda ship. Not yet anyway. Enjoy.

Frank Castle drove down the highway in his black van, listening to the sound of his tires rolling on the asphalt, while his headlights illuminated the darkened road in the night. As he looked out his windshield, Castle passed a green sign with a stamp depicted in its center, carrying the message "Welcome to New Jersey". Frank wore a determined look in his eyes, pressing down on the gas to increase his speed, as he thought back to why he was doing this. Or rather, what he was going to do.

It had been a few weeks after what the media called "The Blip", where everyone who vanished from existence five years ago came back. Frank was forced to watch, as some folks became ashes before his very eyes. God knows what their families were thinking at that time.

And then the phone call came from Lieberman. Frank hadn't been in touch with him since… forever. The last time he spoke with him was seven years ago, when he dropped David off to spend Thanksgiving with his family. Lieberman wanted him to join them, but Frank refused. Even now, he remembered his final words to David.

"David, I'm not coming. You know why I can't."

So why had David called him after all these years? Well, it was more for his daughter Leo. See, he'd recently hacked into the SWORD database using his old Rising Tide resources and discovered something shocking: up in Westview, SWORD agents had set up a response base just outside the town. The reason was because there was some kind of hexagonal shaped forcefield around the area, keeping the entire town and its three thousand residents trapped. After some further digging by Lieberman, it was revealed to have been caused by Wanda Maximoff, one of the Avengers. Apparently, she had been twisting the reality inside the field to give off the appearance of a sitcom, one that changed decades on a dime.

Frank didn't know what that all meant, nor did he really care. What he did care about was when David had hacked into SWORD, they discovered the director, a man named Tyler Hayward, had been experimenting on another of the Avengers… Vision. Now, Vision had died five years ago, during that alien invasion that led to half the world turning to dust, but David found security footage of Wanda breaking into SWORD's headquarters and taking the android's body away. About a week later, the force field appeared in New Jersey.

Castle turned the van right, taking exit 32 on the highway- the path to Westview. At first, Frank had refused to go check it out, despite David telling him that Wanda was Leo's favorite Avenger. That was, until he did some digging himself, and learned more about Maximoff's past. She was originally born in Sokovia, having lost her parents in a bombing. Because of this, she and her twin brother Pietro got in bed with HYDRA, gaining abilities after having been experimented on by an alien weapon recovered from the Battle of New York. Some time after, she lost her brother around the same time that rogue AI named Ultron tried to destroy the world, culminating in the destruction of Sokovia itself. Just shy a year later, Wanda was locked up for refusing to sign the Sokovia Accords.

The Accords. Frank couldn't help but scoff, as he drove closer to Westview. Yeah, he read through that entire book. Nothing but a bunch of bullshit that infringed on people's rights. No doubt Secretary Ross got over a hundred countries to sign it by cramming in so much shit, no one would bother to read the fine print.

Maximoff had to go on the run, travelling around the world with Vision. Unfortunately for them, they were forced to return to the Avengers when those aliens showed up. Frank was busy driving around the country at the time, but he read about what happened: in order to stop Thanos, Wanda had no choice but to rip that yellow jewel out of Vision's head, revealed to be the Mind Stone. One of the six Infinity Stones that Thanos was after. Only problem was, the act killed the android instantly, leaving Maximoff heartbroken. To make matters worse, Thanos had somehow reversed the damage, only to kill Vision a second time, and the rest… the rest was history.

Wanda was among the vanished, joining half the world's population. After five years, the Avengers found a way to bring everyone back, where she participated in the battle against a newly returned Thanos and his armies. That was the moment she became cemented as Leo's favorite Avenger, when she went toe to toe against the Mad Titan, destroying his double bladed sword and very nearly killing him before he called in an airstrike.

Frank pulled up to the SWORD response base, parking behind all the other vehicles and shutting off the headlights. As he looked at the dark red wall of energy in front of it all, he thought about why he was really doing this. For Lieberman, Hell no. Yes, they remained friends, but their mission against Rawlins and Russo had finished long ago. Neither of them had any favors between them. He wasn't even doing this for Leo, despite treating her like his own daughter.

No, the real reason he was doing this was because, deep down, they were alike. They'd both lost everything they'd cared about. For him, it was his wife and kids, shot down in Central Park. His best friend even betrayed him in the process. For her, it was her parents, then her brother, and finally her lover. He already knew what happens to a normal man like him after losing his entire family. But to a young woman with powers…

Frank stepped out of his vehicle, slamming the door a bit louder than intended. Almost instantly, SWORD agents looked over at him, some of them realigning their bodies to point rifles in his direction. Others wore hazmat suits, monitoring the crimson force field. Right behind them was chief asshole himself, Director Hayward. Out of the corner of his eye, Frank could see a young woman, wearing glasses and having black hair, run out from behind an armored truck. If Frank's memory was correct, she was seen in New Mexico with Thor, thirteen years ago.

"Stop!" Tyler shouted, as his dark blue jacket fluttered in the night air. "Who are you?"

"Easy." Frank said in a low voice, calmly walking forward and raising his hands to show he wasn't looking for a fight. Not yet at least. The agents turned on their green dot sights, circling around the white skull on his chest, crudely spray painted onto his kevlar vest. The woman with glasses eyes widened, realizing who had just arrived at their base.

"Holy-"

The red force field suddenly opened up, and a figure slowly walked out. While the agents and Hayward diverted their attention away from Frank, Castle squinted his eyes, just barely making out hints of a red face, with the body mottled in dark green. He already knew it was Vision, but how was he alive?

The android continued walking forward, making small grunts, as tiny pieces seemed to flake off him and go back into the force field. It only took Frank a few seconds to come to an unsettling conclusion: Vision was still dead. Wanda was reanimating his corpse in Westview, and when he tried to leave… well, the result was staring him in the face.

"He really does want out, doesn't he?" Hayward murmured, mostly to himself. Despite this, Frank heard every word, but he didn't sound concerned for the Avenger. After what he and Lieberman found out, Hayward most likely only cared about reacquiring Vision's body in order to experiment on him more.

"Oh no." that same woman with the glasses gasped, as a piece of Vision's shoulder cracked off and flew backwards into the energy field. Castle clenched his fists, continuing to step forward. He knew what he had to do.

Vision fell to his knees, grunting in pain, just as Frank roughly shoved several of the agents out of his way. Meanwhile, the woman began to run forward, but was held back by another agent.

The Punisher continued walking towards the fallen android, seeing him writhe in pain. Frank felt someone grab his shoulder, and he swiftly threw an elbow back, knocking whoever was behind him unconscious. By now, he knew the SWORD agents had gotten back up and were aiming their weapons at him, but right now, he didn't care.

"Mister Castle, stop!" Hayward could be heard shouting. Frank ignored him, continuing to walk over to Vision, just as he let loose an agonizing scream.

Wanda Maximoff sat on a hay bale, speaking with her brother Pietro, when her sons ran up to her. Tonight was supposed to be the town's Halloween party, and the four of them went all out on their costumes. Wanda had worn a bright red dress, complete with a cape, gloves, and curved headpiece that was shaped like an M. Pietro and Tommy wore identical outfits; simple blue tracksuits with white lightning bolts trailing down the side, as well as silver dyed hair. As for Billy, he wore a red cape, with a blue headband.

"Mom!" Billy suddenly yelled, looking up at his mother.

"What?" Wanda asked, noting the fear in her son's eyes. "What is it, Billy?"

"I hear Dad- in my head!" Billy told her, as his voice got more high pitched. "He's in trouble!"

Back outside the hex, Frank continued walking towards Vision, seeing pieces of his body continue to break off. Before Castle's very eyes, his red face was beginning to fade, taking on a more whitish color.

"Help!" Vision rasped in a distorted voice, as he tried reaching out. "The people… the people need help!"

Castle finally made it to the android, picking him up and slinging his outstretched arm over his shoulder. Just as he stood back up, he heard Hayward call out to him again.

"Mister Castle, stop or we'll shoot!"

Frank looked over his shoulder, seeing the SWORD agents had all their rifles trained on him. In his peripheral vision, that same woman with the glasses had been handcuffed to the armored truck. The same one who wanted to help Vision.

"You do what you gotta do." Frank told the director in a subtle challenge. Hayward recoiled, both in surprise and fear, as Castle turned back and began walking towards the force field. He had to get Vision back in there. If he didn't, it was one more death he could've stopped. It didn't matter that he was still dead right now, it was clear that he could feel his body being ripped apart-

Vision suddenly fell down, having lost his grasp around Frank's shoulders. Castle quickly placed his hands under his back and lifted him back up, barely registering the fact that pieces of his arm had disintegrated.

"I… won't… make it…" Vision strained, while Castle walked closer.

"Yes, you will." Frank murmured through gritted teeth. Every step he took, he had to strain to keep going, fighting against an invisible force pushing him back. It was almost like the force field was trying to keep him out.

"I don't understand what's happening to me." Billy cried out, looking frantically from his mother to his uncle.

"Where is he?" Wanda asked sternly, beginning to narrow her eyes. "Where is your dad?"

"Hey, don't sweat it, sis!" Pietro casually laughed. "It's not like your dead husband can die twice!"

Wanda spun around, conjuring a ball of scarlet energy, and blasted Pietro in the chest. The force of the blow knocked him several feet backward, crashing into two gravestone props. With Pietro knocked out, Wanda turned back to her boys, as her own fear began to bubble up inside her.

"Billy, I need you to focus."

Her son shakingly nodded, before closing his eyes to concentrate.

"I… I can't tell." Billy shook his head, as images flew past him. His father, Vision, falling to his knees, as pieces of his body flaked off. Several armed guards, pointing rifles at him. Only one of them, not looking like the rest, was walking up to Vision and picking him up.

"He sees… soldiers." Billy told his mother. "They think he's dying, but... there's this man, who doesn't look like them."

"What do you mean?" Wanda asked in confusion.

"He's… he's wearing a skull on his chest, and he's carrying Dad back." Billy revealed, thinking back to the mental image. "He's trying to help, but he can't get through!"

Overcome with fear, Wanda mustered all the energy she could and froze everyone in place. As she concentrated, her eyes glowed crimson, just before closing to focus on opening the force field.

Frank continued straining against the crimson barrier, holding Vision's body in his arms. Even now, more and more pieces were flaking off of him, as his body reverted back to its monochrome hue. Just as Castle thought it was too late, the space in front of him changed color, from red to a sky blue.

The Punisher stepped through the gap, feeling some kind of energy wash over him. Unbeknownst to him, the gap closed up the moment he crossed, trapping him and Vision inside.

Wanda opened her eyes, feeling the scarlet glow fade from her pupils.

"Dad's okay!" Billy said happily, no longer hearing Vision screaming. "But that man is still with him."

Wanda nodded knowingly. She let the man pass through, even letting him keep his mind. He'd earned that much. But when she saw what he was wearing; that vest with the skull, a feeling of familiarity surfaced. Could it be-

"Mom? Are you okay?"

Wanda looked back at Tommy and Billy, seeing them look up at her in concern.

"I'm fine." Maximoff quickly said. "Let's go get your dad."

Frank continued walking towards the town, carrying an unconscious Vision. By now, his body was whole, but Castle was focusing on the fact he was hearing nothing but silence. Why was that? Halloween decorations were set up. There should be people trick or treating, right?

Just as Castle made it to Ellis Avenue, he saw a flash of crimson light, and a figure wearing a red outfit and headpiece hovered towards him. Maximoff. Frank looked up at her, seeing the Avenger glide down to the ground, stopping only a couple feet in front of him.

"Thank you." Wanda whispered, shedding a tear for this man's kindness. Frank merely nodded, lowering Vision's body to the ground, and that's when he finally got a look at himself. Or rather, what he was wearing.

Gone was his trench coat and bulletproof vest, in favor of a full suit black suit of kevlar. Splashed across the front was a white skull, seemingly perfectly painted on as opposed to the crude spray paint he had used in the past. Upon further inspection, Frank realized he was wearing white gauntlets that extended to the wrists, with ankle high boots to match. Around his waist was a belt of the same color, with orange tipped toy guns to match.

Wanda took a look at the skull on his chest, then the face. She didn't even want to believe who it was when Billy told her, but now she had no choice. Even though he had saved her husband, she was still wary, conjuring up a ball of scarlet energy.

"You… you're…"

"Yeah." Frank mumbled, finally looking at Maximoff. Wanda kept the ball of energy burning, as she looked at Castle quizzically.

"Are you here to kill me?"

"C'mon, Maximoff. If I was, you'd have already sent me out the barrier, right?" Frank reasoned. Wanda was still giving him the side eye, but allowed the energy to fade away into the air.

"But you gotta stop this." Castle told her. In an instant, Wanda's eyes turned crimson, and she glared at the Punisher.

"What?"

"You gotta stop this." Frank repeated. "You've taken an entire town hostage. The people out there, they think you're a monster."

Wanda squeezed one of her hands into a fist, while the other began to create another ball of energy.

"And what do you think?" she asked, changing her tone to sound more aggressive.

Frank stared at Maximoff, before looking away and sighing.

"I think deep down, you're still that scared kid that lost her parents in Sokovia." Castle guessed, looking around the town. "C'mon, what's your plan here? You wait till SWORD shows up, you blow them all to Hell? That will not work. They will find something to get through that barrier you set up, and then they'll find something that can kill you, I promise you that."

"I already warned them." Wanda said harshly, as the crimson ball of energy grew bigger. "I told them to stay out of my home."

Frank quickly realized the situation was going South, as Wanda's eyes got brighter from the red glow. Still, he pushed on.

"Listen to me. I am not your enemy." Castle told her. "You need to let these people go. You let them leave, bring the field down. Just do it, yeah? Nobody else needs to get hurt."

Wanda's eyes faded back to their normal hue, as she looked toward the ground.

"But if I do that… my family will die."

Just as she said that, a blue and white blur zoomed right next to Wanda, revealing itself to be Pietro Maximoff. Right next to him were two kids, both male. One was dressed just like Pietro, while the other wore a red blanket for a cape.

"Mom!" the one in the cape shouted, hugging Wanda's legs, while the mini-Pietro was checking on Vision.

"Ah, cool Grim Reaper costume, dude!" Pietro smirked, looking Castle up and down. "Or are you supposed to be a 'Death Gunslinger'?"

Frank frowned, studying Pietro's face. The hair, the suit's color scheme were there, by why was his face different? Either way, Frank instantly realized who the kids were: these were Wanda's children, most likely created in this new reality. But if she shut down the force field, what would happen to them?

While Castle pondered this, he heard Wanda's voice, but she wasn't speaking. Instead, her voice was echoing in his head. Though Frank kept his face neutral, he could feel Maximoff combing through his brain, looking into his memories. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Wanda finally spoke.

"I understand you lost your family too." Wanda whispered. Frank looked off to the side, shuddering from the memory of his children and Maria dying in a hail of gunfire.

"Yeah." Castle mumbled, still staring into the distance. "Yeah, that's right."

Wanda shifted uncomfortably, trying to ignore Billy leaning on her, before speaking again.

"If you had a chance to bring them back, what would you do?"

"Anything." Frank confessed, turning back to look Wanda in the eye. "I'd do anything."

Maximoff stared into Frank's eyes, knowing he was telling the truth.

"Here we are." Wanda smiled sadly.

"Here we are." Frank whispered in agreement. "You, uh… you care if I call you Wanda, or should we stick to Maximoff?"

The former Avenger raised an eyebrow, almost confused at what he was asking, before uttering her answer.

"Wanda's fine."

"Okay." Castle nodded. "Okay Wanda, here's the thing. I won't deny that if I could do what you can, I'd bring them back. I know I would. You're hurting. You've had everything taken away from you, and you want it back, I get that. But by building your own family, you're taking away all these people from theirs. So why don't you bring the barrier down, and let them leave, yeah?"

Wanda looked over to Pietro, just in time to see his body morph back into that corpse like state from before. Pale face, glazed eyes, bullet holes in his chest.

"Let them go, Wanda." Frank repeated. "What are you gonna do here? You gonna keep everyone captive here, control their every move? Is that who you are?"

Wanda turned her head in Castle's direction, narrowing her eyes in a glare, when they all suddenly heard a new voice.

"Wanda…"

Everyone looked down, seeing Vision had regained consciousness. However long it was, Frank wasn't sure.

"He's right."

Hearing those two words shattered Wanda's heart, causing her to sink to her knees.

"What?" she asked, feeling tears well up. "Vis, what do you mean-"

"Wanda, I spoke to Agnes. She told me I was dead." Vision revealed. "All this time, I've never known what my life was like before Westview… and I think I know why now."

"No, Vis, please…" Wanda cried, feeling tears pour down her cheeks.

"Look at me." Vision told her, reaching up and touching her face. "You must let these people go."

"If I do that, you'll die." Wanda murmured. "So will Pietro. And Tommy and Billy… I can't."

"Yes you can." Vision squeezed her hand tighter. "It's not fair, to lose what you love most, but I wouldn't be able to live with myself, knowing that all these people are held captive in order for me to survive."

"It's not like that-" Wanda tried to say, but Vision interrupted her.

"Yes it is, Wanda." the android nodded. "It is. This is not living, being confined to this town."

"But if you leave…" Wanda's voice trailed off. Vision slowly stood up, holding Wanda up with him.

"Something isn't beautiful just because it lasts, Wanda." Vision said sadly, parting a strand of his wife's hair from her face. "I'll always be with you… where it matters most."

To emphasize his point, Vision placed his hand on Wanda's chest, where her heart was. Maximoff grasped the hand tightly, still feeling tears pour out, as Vision leaned in to kiss her. The moment their lips touched, Wanda closed her eyes, blocking everything else out. She wasn't in Westview anymore. Pietro, her sons, and the Punisher weren't standing around her. All she felt… was him.

The kiss ended shortly, with Wanda opening her eyes to see Vision pulling back slightly.

"What you're doing, Wanda… it's wrong." Vision murmured. "It is wrong, you have to see that."

"Yes…" Wanda finally admitted sadly, as Vision began backing away. "Vis, I…"

"I know." Vision interrupted, wearing a sad smile. Wanda solemnly nodded, as she closed her eyes, focusing on the force field. Frank looked back toward the barrier, seeing it slowly come towards them.

"That's it." Frank murmured, noticing the trees in the distance vanish when the force field flew past them. Pietro and the twins seemed to realize what was going on, and began pleading with Wanda to stop.

"Wanda, come on!" Pietro said frantically, stepping towards Wanda in an attempt to stop her. He was only stopped by Vision holding onto him, grabbing him by the arms. "If you do this, I'll be dead again!"

"Mom, please!" Tommy and Billy shouted. "We don't want to go! We want to stay here with you and Dad!"

Wanda continued closing the hex force field, as a final tear rolled down her face.

"I'm sorry." Maximoff whispered, still keeping her eyes closed. Her next words made her heart break into a million pieces, but it was the truth. A truth she had been avoiding once this all started.

"But none of you are real."

The force field got closer and closer, until it reached Ellis Avenue. As the energy barrier sweeped towards them, Vision looked at his wife one last time. Despite restraining Pietro, he flashed a genuine smile, though she wouldn't see it.

"I love you…"

The force field passed through the avenue, washing over Wanda, Frank, Vision, Pietro, and the boys. Castle looked down at his clothes, seeing that they reverted back to the kevlar vest with the skull painted on it, as well as his trench coat and black pants. Strapped to his sides were his pistols, which were, thankfully, no longer toy versions. The Punisher looked back up, seeing that Pietro and the kids were gone, as was Vision. Or at least, Vision's living form. All that remained was his dull grey corpse, with a chunk of his forehead missing. The same body he had been changing into when he stepped outside Westview. As for Wanda, she no longer wore her Halloween costume. Instead, she wore her dark red jacket; the same one she wore during the final battle against Thanos.

Wanda kept her eyes closed, focusing on shrinking the force field. Frank watched, as the crimson colored barrier got smaller and smaller, releasing more and more people from its containment, until it seemingly disappeared altogether. Once she no longer felt the field in her mind, Wanda opened her eyes, looking behind her to see the residents of Westview, now freed from her control. Some of them widened their eyes and ran away. Some refused to even look at her. All were afraid of her… and for good reason.

Wanda buried her face in her hands, sobbing uncontrollably. In one fell swoop, she lost her husband, her brother, and her children. As she continued crying, she found herself stumbling forward, wrapping her arms around the person in front of her to keep her from falling down: Frank Castle.

"Hey." Frank murmured, awkwardly placing his arm on her back in an attempt to comfort her. "Hey, hey, hey. It'll be okay. It's going to be okay."

"I'm sorry." Wanda's voice was muffled with her face buried into his chest, but he heard her anyway. As she sobbed, she wondered if this was what Castle felt when his family was gunned down right before his eyes. "They're right. I am a monster."

"No." Frank whispered, putting his other hand on the back of her head. He vaguely remembered doing this whenever Lisa was crying. Castle wasn't sure if it would work with Wanda, being that she was in her thirties now, but it's all he knew.

"You made a mistake." Frank told her. "But you did the right thing in the end. You did good."

Director Hayward and the SWORD agents watched, as the force field shrunk more and more. It wasn't until the dark red walls completely vanished altogether, when he decided to speak.

"Okay, let's move in!" Hayward shouted, and all the agents piled into the armored trucks and began driving towards Westview. That was, except for the truck Darcy Lewis was handcuffed to.

"Are you serious?" Darcy asked in an annoyed voice, as the last truck roared past her.

"Shit!"

Wanda continued sobbing, prompting Frank to keep holding her up. The two of them could have stood like that forever, but Castle heard the distant rumbling of tires rolling towards them. Tires that were attached to trucks. Trucks that no doubt had SWORD agents in them. Dammit.

Maximoff heard the trucks as well, causing her to pull away and look up at Frank in fear.

"They're coming."

"Yeah." Frank nodded, racking his brain for a solution. He didn't like the one he settled on, but they were running out of time.

"Okay, you're gonna be okay." Castle promised. "Listen to me. You gotta walk away."

Wanda looked at Frank in confusion, wondering why he wanted to help her so bad.

"Castle, don't do this." Wanda pleaded, but Frank didn't let up.

"Walk away. Walk away right now-"

"Please, don't do this." Wanda begged, refusing to let him push her away.

"Stop it." Frank said sternly, looking down at Vision's corpse. "You walk away, or fly away. You take his body and you get out of here, yeah? Go now."

Wanda stopped crying, wiping away her tears and gave Castle a determined look.

"I'm not leaving you here."

Frank looked into Wanda's eyes, seeing a flicker of scarlet in her pupils. Castle sighed, knowing he wasn't going to convince her out of this one.

"Okay." Castle nodded, already forming a plan in his mind. "You stay behind me, yeah?"

Wanda reluctantly nodded, and Frank turned around, just as the armored trucks stopped several yards away from them. At least a dozen SWORD agents stepped out, pointing their rifles at him and Wanda. Wait, not at them… Frank looked to his right, seeing the green dot sights trained on Maximoff's chest. Not a single one of them was aiming at him. They were all pointed at Wanda.

Tyler Hayward stepped out of the center truck, walking a few steps in front of the agents with his hands in his pockets.

"Mister Castle!" the director of SWORD barked, his once combed gray hair now parted from the wind. "Step away from Wanda Maximoff! She's dangerous!"

Frank looked back at Wanda, seeing her eyes widen slightly. She wasn't the strong Avenger that took Thanos head on. Not right now at least.

"That right?" Castle called out.

"It is." Hayward insisted. "She took an entire town hostage! Every single resident was under her control."

"And I've hurt people." Frank retorted. "I've killed pieces of shit."

Hayward narrowed his eyes, pursing his lips in frustration.

"You've killed criminals-"

"You have your guns on a goddamn Avenger. She hasn't killed anyone." Castle interrupted. "I have. So why don't you take those guns, and you point them at me. You point them at me, but you let me get her out of here first."

A few of the SWORD agents looked between him and Hayward, while the director fumbled to find the right words.

"She was responsible for the destruction in Lagos seven years ago-"

"Oh Jesus." Frank scoffed. "Rumlow was ready to blow himself up. If she didn't move him somewhere, he would've taken a lot more people, including Captain Rogers. Is that what you want?"

Tyler took his hands out of his pockets, revealing closed fists that were shaking in annoyance. Or was it from anxiety?

"Mister Castle, I know you're a smart man." Hayward said condescendingly. "So you must know you're outmanned and outgunned. So stand aside, let us take Wanda into custody, and reacquire the asset."

Castle's eyes narrowed in anger, shooting the director a glare. So his suspicions were right; they only cared about taking back Vision's corpse for more experiments. Did they even care about the people of Westview at all?

Frank looked toward Wanda, seeing her fearful expression grow. Despite all her power, she was still scared about what might happen. Castle's mouth formed a tight line, knowing what she was thinking. That she had already done enough. Time for a new plan. One where they'd both make it out, instead of Castle handing himself over.

"Yeah." Frank admitted, already making the plan. "Yeah, I see that. But I'm staying right here."

"Castle…"

Frank looked back at Wanda, seeing her expression morph between fear and desperation.

"Just go." Maximoff pleaded. "Please. You've done enough for me, and I'm thankful. But you need to let them take me in."

"I am not leaving." Frank said sternly, before facing Hayward again. "Let me ask you something: why do you want Vision's body?"

Hayward's eyes widened, as he stuttered to speak.

"I… I'm trying to save the world-"

"Come on… that's elementary school shit." Frank groaned. "You want his body to experiment on, right? Turn it into a weapon, a weapon that you can control. And you're using the Snap, yeah? You're using the last five years as an excuse for all the shit you're doing now."

Hayward wrinkled his nose in anger, as he stepped forward.

"You don't know what it's been like for the last five years." Tyler sneered. "Half of the entire world vanished, and the other half was left to pick up the pieces. We watched our friends, our family crumble right in front of us."

"I was there, asshole." Frank snarled. "And I'm starting to get sick of your goddamn voice, you know that?"

Hayward was about to speak, but Castle wasn't done.

"Now I'm going to walk that way-" Frank pointed directly in front of him, past the SWORD agents. "-towards my car. Wanda's coming with me, and we're taking Vision's body. Now what're you gonna do? You gonna kill me? You gonna kill Wanda, is that who you are? Decision's in your hands, Director. You decide how this goes!"

Hayward's anger flared, as he took another step forward.

"That's right, Castle!" Tyler nearly shouted. "I do!"

"Wow, you're a big man." the Punisher sneered in mockery, as Hayward fidgeted with his hands. "Well go ahead, big man, make your decision! Are you ready? You ready to kill Wanda, to kill me?"

For several long moments, no one moved a muscle. The SWORD agents kept looking between Wanda, to Frank, then back to their boss. Maximoff stayed behind Castle, not wanting to lose control and lash out, while Hayward's eye twitched from Frank's challenge. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the director spoke.

"Shoot to kill." Hayward ordered, turning his back on the pair and walking towards one of the trucks.

Frank stared at the small squad of soldiers grimly, as half of them shifted their rifles to aim at him.

"Stay behind me." Castle ordered at Wanda, as he pulled out his pistols and began firing. Three of the agents went down before the rest even fired back, and Frank let loose a primal roar, squeezing the triggers and shooting blindly. Unfortunately for him, the agents' weapons packed a bunch, and two bullets crashed into Castle's vest, sending him to the ground.

"Castle!" Wanda cried out, using her powers to conjure an energy shield colored scarlet. While Frank was getting up, Maximoff sent out a stream of crimson energy to latch onto one of the agents' rifles, ripping it out of his hands and flying right into Frank's arms. The Punisher gave a short nod, before turning the weapon on Hayward's men, yelling again as he sprayed bullets everywhere. The deadly projectiles ripped through the agents, killing them almost instantly, while the director of SWORD was strafing to the side. As Frank was busy shooting at the remainder of his agents, Hayward had snuck into his blindspot, pulling out a pistol and aiming for his head. Given that Wanda's shield only covered the front of Castle, Tyler had a clear shot. The Punisher didn't even notice.

But she did.

"No!" Wanda suddenly gasped, sweeping her hand to the side. Red energy enveloped Hayward, and he was suddenly thrown backwards, violently hitting the side of one of the trucks. At around the same time, Frank finished shooting up the last of the SWORD agents, and Wanda lowered the shield. Castle nodded in thanks, but noticed she was about to cry again.

"I killed him." Wanda whispered.

"What?" Frank asked.

"I… I killed him." Wanda repeated, pointing behind Castle. Frank looked at her in confusion, before glancing over at Hayward. He walked over to the director, seeing blood on the side of truck… but he was still breathing.

"No." Frank murmured, still holding onto his borrowed rifle. "No, you just hit him, yeah? Hey-"

Castle pointed the weapon at Hayward's head and fired, sending a bullet through his skull and coat the truck door with even more blood.

"See that? I killed him." Frank told her. "We gotta go, okay? We need to get Vision, and we gotta get you out of here."

Castle began walking back toward Vision's body, pausing to see Wanda still standing there, breathing heavily. If he were to guess, she was about to cry again. If anything, Wanda reminded him a bit of Amy Bendix.

"Hey, no." Frank said softly, walking back to Wanda and looking her in the eye. "Hey, look at me. That piece of shit ain't worth a single one of your tears."

Wanda stared up at Frank, but was still breathing heavily, trying not to let the tears fall.

"You take five seconds, yeah?" Frank told her. Wanda nodded, and slowly calmed down. "Okay. Now let's go, alright?"

Wanda nodded again, and Frank made his way over towards Vision's body, picking him up the same way he did before and walked back towards Maximoff. Once he was close enough, Wanda held out her arms, prompting Castle to leave the fallen android in her care.

"Thank you." Wanda smiled in gratitude, seeing Frank nod. The two of them began walking past the armored trucks, and more importantly, away from Westview.

Frank and Wanda arrived back at the edge of town, where the SWORD response base had been set up. There were only two vehicles there now: Frank's black van, and the armored truck that the woman wearing glasses was handcuffed to. The moment he saw her, still handcuffed, Frank narrowed his eyes in disgust. Hayward never even gave a damn about his own subordinates. He probably didn't care about anyone but himself.

The woman was trying to break out of the handcuffs by hitting them, when she suddenly saw Wanda and the Punisher walk up to her, and her eyes widened in alarm.

"Holy shit!" the woman exclaimed, seeing Vision's body. "What the Hell happened?"

"You don't want to know." Wanda shook her head sadly. She gently laid Vision down on the ground, creating a tiny spark of scarlet energy between her fingertips. The spark shot towards the cuffs, breaking the connecting links, and the woman was free.

"Thanks." the woman smiled, rubbing her wrist. "I'm Darcy, by the way. I knew Thor when he first came here."

"Yeah." Frank murmured, while Wanda picked Vision back up and continued walking towards the other vehicle: the Punisher's van. Castle followed after her, throwing open the van's back doors to reveal the collection of weapons he had stored. Rifles, pistols, shotguns… you name it, it was there. Wanda didn't seem to mind it, or if she did, she didn't say it, as she laid Vision's body down on the floor of the van.

Castle shut the van doors and began walking towards the driver's side, just as a black van pulled up. Frank pulled out one of his pistols, prepared for more agents, as the vehicle's doors opened, and out walked two figures. One of them had Asian features, wearing an FBI jacket, while the other was an African American woman, wearing a jacket with the SWORD insignia on it.

The Punisher narrowed his eyes at the supposed SWORD agent, preparing to step forward, until he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Wait."

Frank looked behind him, seeing that Wanda was the one who held him back. Castle grimly nodded, before turning back toward the newcomers.

"What the-" the FBI agent stopped, looking at Frank in shock. "You… you're the Punisher!"

"Yeah." Frank grunted, holstering his weapon. Meanwhile, the SWORD agent looked at Maximoff in worry.

"Wanda, you're with him?" the woman asked. Wanda hesitated, looking over at Castle, before nodding.

"I am." Wanda confirmed. "He helped me see what I was doing was wrong."

"Wait a second…" the FBI agent looked around. "Where's everyone else?"

"Hayward and those other assholes are just outside the town." Frank revealed, nudging his head in the direction of Westview. "They attacked us, so I defended myself and Wanda."

"Are you alright, Wanda?" the woman asked, looking over at Maximoff with concern.

"I'm fine." Wanda shrugged reassuredly. "And I'm leaving."

"But… we need to call this in." the FBI agent announced, just as Frank opened his van door and ushered Wanda in. "Hey wait! We need to report this!"

Castle shut Wanda's door, staring back at the two agents, and let out a tired sigh.

"Yeah, you do what you gotta do." Frank murmured, before walking to the van's driver side and climbing in. The man and woman watched paralyzed in confusion, as Frank started the engine up, and the van took off down the road, leaving the town of Westview behind.

Two Days Later

Wanda finished shovelling the last bit of dirt on top of Vision's body, patting the soil down with the flat end of her shovel. It had been a couple days since Frank Castle arrived in Westview and helped convince her to let the residents of the town go. By now, word had probably spread that Director Hayward of SWORD was killed. Whether it was revealed to be Frank who pulled the trigger or blamed on Wanda didn't matter. She was there when it happened, so now she was wanted.

Maximoff leaned against the shovel, looking up to see Frank standing next to a distant tree. His jacket was zipped up, hiding the white skull he always wore. After two days of travelling, they finally stopped in the middle of nowhere, and Wanda buried Vision's body. They chose not to mark the grave, for fear that SWORD was find him and use him again. She'd be lying if it tore her apart to not bury her husband near the Avengers compound in New York, but that would be the first place anyone would look for her. No, it was better this way, to bury Vision here, where no one could ever find him. Not even her.

She could have used her powers to make the grave. It would have been easier, quicker. Just rip out a chunk of the ground, shove Vision's corpse in, and drop the slab of dirt back on top. But he was her husband, her lover. She wanted to do this right. So, when they finally picked the safest place to bury him, Wanda grabbed a shovel and dug by hand. She even refused Castle's help when he offered, despite the fact it would have gone faster.

Frank noticed Wanda was finished digging the grave, where he began to slowly walk towards her, trying to keep a neutral face. In reality, he was proud of her. Proud that she dug that grave without using her powers. Proud that she ended her control of Westview when she realized she'd gone too far. Proud that-

"Castle?"

Frank broke out of train of thought, looking Wanda in the eye.

"You can call me Frank." the Punisher offered.

"Okay… Frank." Wanda smiled halfheartedly. "Why did you help me?"

Castle blinked in surprise, trying to think of what to say. He hadn't really expect her to ask that.

"You're my friend's daughter's favorite Avenger."

"That's not it." Wanda shook her head in denial. "There's something else."

"If you know, why don't you read my mind, yeah?" Frank asked.

"Because I want to hear it from you." Wanda revealed. "Please."

Frank looked down at Maximoff and sighed. After everything, she deserved to know the truth.

"You and I aren't so different." Frank revealed. "We're both lost. We've both lost everything."

Wanda saw Frank look away, trying to hide the tears that were threatening to pour out, and she lunged forward, wrapping him in a hug. Castle was taken aback only for a moment, but he quickly recovered, pressing her back close to him to return the embrace.

"Thank you, Frank." Wanda sobbed, her voice muffling against his chest. "Thank you."

"Yeah…" Frank mumbled, patting her on the back. "You uh… where you gonna go now?"

"I don't know…" Wanda's voice trailed off, as she got an idea. "Can I… can I stay with you?"

Frank raised an eyebrow in surprise, as he looked at Wanda, studying her face. She was serious.

"You sure about this?" Frank asked, seeing Wanda slowly nod. Castle looked towards the van on the side of the road, as he remembered an old saying a friend once told him. About how living was just trying not to be alone… and Wanda was trying to live.

"Okay." Frank whispered, nodding slightly. Wanda's eyes lit up with joy, as she kissed Castle on the cheek.

"Thank you." Wanda mumbled happily, as the two made their way back towards the van. Once they got in, Frank started the engine, and the van roared to life, driving down the road again. As they drove down the streets, Wanda looked over at Frank, smiling in happiness. She'd read Frank's mind earlier, and that quote about living had stuck with her. Whoever wrote it was right of course, for if you're alone, are you really living?

While they continued driving, Wanda looked over to Frank and shot him a grateful smile. Grateful, for all he had done for her. After all, he was right: deep down, underneath all that power, Wanda really was still that scared girl from Sokovia… just like how Frank was still a soldier, trapped in an endless war.

Sensing that he was being stared at, Castle glanced over in her direction and nodded, as a silent understanding passed between them.

Neither of them were alone anymore. And they were still living.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm honestly a bit surprised there's not a single fic that puts Frank Castle and Wanda Maximoff in a room together. Or at least, not one that I've seen. They've both suffered great losses, and they've both done drastic things to cope with the trauma. Hell, I know I'm in a minority here, but I think if they met, they'd have a stronger friendship than Wanda and Clint, because while he lost his family from the Snap, he eventually got it all back. Wanda didn't.
> 
> Anyway, I'd love to see the Punisher interact with more characters from the MCU. I'd especially love it if he had a cameo in Falcon and Winter Soldier. With Zemo as the main villain, and the Mandarin being in Shang Chi, they could easily set up the War in Bagalia story arc. I'm pretty sure they won't actually do that, but a man can dream.
> 
> That's all for now. I'll get back to writing my current multi-chapter story soon. Take care.


End file.
